4 stars

You can read all of my reviews at Nerd Girl Loves Books.

This is a good YAFantasy retelling of The Goose Girl. I had never heard of this fairytale, so I went in with no preconceived notions about the story. It took me awhile to get into the book, but once I did, I really enjoyed it.

Vanja is the adopted daughter of Death and Fortune. When she got older they found her a place in the Prince's palace as the servant of Princess Gisele. Death and Fortune told Vanja that when she turned 17, she would have to choose which of her mothers she wanted to serve for the rest of her life. Wanting to have control over her future, Vanja steals the life of Princess Gisele and impersonates her during Gisele's journey to her future husband. This leaves Gisele a penniless nobody.

Vanja charms the nobility while she secretly steals their jewels to fund her escape to freedom. She is one job away from gaining enough money to flee when she crosses the wrong god and is cursed. She has two weeks to break the curse or she will turn into jewels, stone by stone. As if she doesn't have enough problems, Gisele's odious fiance returns home from the war and a junior detective is hot on the case of her theft spree.

As I said, the book started off slow, but once it picked up it was a quick read. The author does a great job of setting up the world and building Vanja's character. Vanja gradually becomes a better person, and I appreciated the pace of it because it stayed true to her selfish, "me first" character. Her relationships with the junior detective and the real Gisele added depth to the story. The character of Ragne, the daughter of the god that cursed Vanja, sprinkles humor and lightness to a story that could quickly become very depressing.

At 512 pages, the book is quite long. It starts off slow, but stick with it and you will enjoy the read. I received a complimentary copy of this book from NetGalley and Henry Holt & Company. All opinions are my own.

Little Thieves by Margaret Owen was a fun surprise. I have never read the tale of the goose girl, that this is a retelling of, but I knew the general idea and main plot points of the original. In recounting the tale, Owens went above and beyond creating unique characters and world building for her story. The environment felt old and lived in. The peoples, families, and gods that inhabit this world feel ancient, as if they have been around for centuries. It really was impressive. I gave this a 4.75/5 stars. I am looking forward to going back and reading Owens previous works based on my enjoyment with this one.

Would recommend to those who enjoy retellings, Germanic/Slavic folktales and lore, and/or those who are fans of Leigh Bardugo's Grishaverse.

Having never read the original fairy tale, "The Goose Girl," I was intrigued in this story from the get go. The "typical" fantasy setting elements were there, but that only made the foundation for a more complex fairy tale-like story more intriguing and interesting to follow. Owen meticulously blends her unique writing style with all of the action, magic, romance, and humor one would want when reading a YA fantasy book. The protagonist is witty, dynamic, edgy, and the contemporary strong female we all want to see with new-aged fantasy stories. I can see this book flying off the shelves in my school district across high schools. Bravo to Margaret Owen!

It’s a lovely morning in the village, and you are a horrible girl.

Wait.

Goose. You’re a horrible goose. Well, you’re a horrible goose girl. The Goose Girl, to be more specific—or both of them, the princess with the disobedient servant and the servant who steals her mistress's place in the Grimm's version. The fairy tale is about punishing those who dare to step out of the socio-political hierarchy. Little Thieves is not. It is so entirely, ferociously not about that at all.

It is, however, still about rules. The rules of society, the rules for women, the rules for the wealthy. It’s about how to inhabit those rules, how to use them to get yourself every advantage, how to bend them to get every whim—and then finally, it’s about how to break them. And it starts—no not ends, starts—with a massive heist.

The setup is immensely interesting from the get-go, and more than that, it’s fun. And so is our (anti-)heroine, who’s got the charisma of the whole Ocean’s Eleven team rolled up into one person.

Well, one ish. See, Vanja was born a poor girl, but harsh experience taught her that it wasn’t so great to be herself. So she traded up: she stole a prinzessin’s appearance and identity. And that was enough to ensure her safety for a time, but it didn’t guarantee it forever—and it didn’t give vent to her rage at the unfairness of her life up to that point. And so in. addition to being prinzessin Gisele, she also became a thief who preyed on the upper classes, a swindler so skilled they dubbed her the Pfennigeist. This is a nice gender swap of the Loveable Rogue trope, allowing a woman to be the coy and irrepressible one, cracking jokes at inopportune times and letting her charisma carry her through sticky situations. She even uses secret communication devices to send rude drawings. She’s the Kirk, the Han Solo, the Doug Judy, the…you get the idea.

None of this is a spoiler, by the way; it’s setup. We learn all of this in the first chapter. Owen is fearless with her clever ideas, going through them as fast as Vanja swaps between identities. But she delves deep into her characters. I already knew Margaret Owen was good at getting me to love her characters, but I wasn't expecting to fall so fast or so hard for Vanja. She announced 20 pages in that this was the story of how she got caught. And even after those 20 pages, I already didn't want her to be. I already loved precious, devious Vanja and I never, ever wanted any harm to come to her.

Impossible, of course. Vanja doesn’t just have one past, she has three, all of them waiting to catch up with her. In her own life, she has a trifecta of gods meddling in her life. As Gisele, she has a pesky betrothal that can no longer be put off. And as the Pfennigeist, she has a prefect asking too many questions. Vanja is equal to any of them, but is she equal to all of them? And is she equal to all of them with deadlines looming and an even more sinister plot afoot?

Yes, Vanja might need help, but it turns out that being vulnerable is much more challenging than robbing the rich and famous. Owen understands that trauma makes you self-protective, and much of Little Thieves is about the blurry lines between self-defense and selfishness. You have to focus on yourself and meeting your own most basic needs for comfort and safety, but how much are you allowed to trample on others’ wellbeing to ensure your own? Vanja makes a lot of questionable choices, but Owen never lets us think that Vanja is a horrible person. She gives Vanja space to grow and learn.
Owen has compassion for all of her main characters, the kind of thoughtful compassion that doesn’t let them off the hook for the consequences of their actions, but also doesn’t force them to become trite moral parables instead of people. It is one of the greatest compliments I can give when I say that Owen writes for complexity. Not just with it, but for it: she wants more nuance, she wants more intersection, she wants much more than good and evil. She wants to understand the larger societal forces at work that enable evil, the contexts that perpetuate it, and the small but mighty ways that people find to resist. And the resistance of even a few is enough to make even the gods question how the world works, and how it should work.
I could go on at much greater length, but really, Little Thieves is just a pure triumph of a book. I have exactly one criticism of this book. Just one. Why isn't there a goose?

Okay, okay, I get that there doesn't actually need to be a goose. I just really think Owen could have written an excellent talking goose, or pet goose, or even goose-related scene. C'mon, the horse showed up!

Other than that lone (facetious) critique, I have nothing to say except bravo, bravo, bravo.

"Little Thieves"
by Margaret Owen

Love this book! So much....

I can't wait for more from Margaret Owen.

Okay let me just begin this review by talking about how much I enjoyed Margaret Owen's plot and writing. That way I can end this review with a love letter to Vanja. Little Thieves has a plot that is absorbing. It unfurls like a beautiful tapestry with gilded thread. The amount of twists and turns will keep you saying, "I'll stop after this chapter...no this chapter". This is a true story, it happened to me. I had to fight to put the book down because I had to figure out what was going to happen.

While reading, I have so many notes which are just me excitedly recapping events that happened and being like, "OMG WHAT". Again, this is a direct quote from my notes. And Owen tells a compelling story that not only makes you feel like you're unraveling the mystery, but that you are part of the story. Because the characters in it are so three dimensional. They are quirky, endearing, and flawed. It's easy to say, "oh that's such a Vanja thing" because we get a fabulous sense of who they are.

Little Thieves started off strong and didn't let up until the very end. It is one of my top fantasy reads of this year! I loved the world that Margaret Owen created that's inspired by The Goose Girl fairytale and creatures from other legends. I like that rather than being a retelling of The Goose Girl, it's based on it but told in Vanja's perspective.
The dynamics between Vanja, Emeric, and Ragne were enjoyable and quite hilarious at times. The character growth was subtle but believable. I look forward to reading more from Margaret Owen and hopefully more stories that take place in the Little Thieves world!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

4.5 stars

While I initially balked when I saw how long this book was, Little Thieves quickly won me over with its fascinating worldbuilding, its use of the found family trope, and its wonderfully complex and witty main character.

In a genre populated by retellings, Little Thieves stands out by centering this take on The Goose Girl from the perspective of what most of us would characterize as the villain. Owen does a fantastic job of bringing Vanja's voice to life so that we are engaged with her from the beginning. She is funny, she is wounded, she is feisty, and most of all, she is human. It is a delight to see her morph from a hardened thief to a friend, a lover, and a daughter as the book progresses. Did I still think the book was a bit long at times? Yes. Did I find that it mattered less and less the more I got into the story? Absolutely.

There would be so many times throughout my day where I would just be waiting to get back into this world and honestly, I haven't felt that way about a book in quite some time. Looking at Goodreads, I can see that this is part of a planned series. I could not be more onboard and I am thrilled to see where Owen takes these characters next!

Thank you to NetGalley and Henry Holt & Co. (BYR) for a copy of this ARC in exchange for a fair and honest review!

An absolute masterpiece, a favorite for 2021! I can't wait to get a copy of this, its writing is wonderful and characters masterful!

I really, really wanted to like Little Thieves, but after trying for more than 2 weeks to get into it and read it and after not being able to get past the like 33% mark in the book, I'm giving up. I think this could be the perfect book for a lot of people because it had all of the right pieces to it with gods, a princess, an orphan who has two of the coolest gods as her godmothers pretending to be a princess, and thievery- as well as consequences for your actions- there was just something about this book that made me not want to keep reading it. As soon as I can get access to an audiobook version, I'm going to try it again and see if maybe it was just a format issue and maybe I'll like that better, but for not, because I know lots of people will love it, but it just wasn't for me, I'm giving Little Thieves 3 stars.

** spoiler alert ** “But the more I know of you, the more I understand that the world keeps making you choose between survival and martyrdom. No one should fault you for wanting to live.”

This magical Goose Girl retelling is told from the villain, Vanya Schmidt’s pov. It begins with her being traded to the Low Gods Death and Fortune. From the beginning, she is cast off from her own family, like a bad luck charm.

This novel tells the story of a broken 16-year-old girl who is forced to become the servant of a young princess named Gisele. It tells the story of the Red Penny thief and the quest of Junior Prefect Conrad tailing the thief in order to arrest them.

I adored every single character in this novel, minus of course the pig margrave. Owen brings this retelling to life through spellbinding tales of thieving, survival, and even a tad bit of sapphic romance. If there were a way to make me fall for the misunderstood villain, Owen holds the key to that.

“I want to be with you more than I fear losing you. If you want me to chase you, I will chase you. If you want me to find you, I will find you. If you’ll have me, I will
choose you every time. Maybe I’ve finally learned to be brave.”

I did not at all expect the romance between Vanja and Conrad, but I loved the surprise of it. I found myself turning the pages faster and faster just so I could get another cute moment of them together. Conrad is one of the first people who show her mercy after of course, accusing her of murder but that’s beside the point.

Throughout the novel, Vanja attempts to understand what makes her a bad person. She views herself as what society has determined her as. A nobody servant who will never be chosen over royalty. With each friend she makes, she begins to care about others and let others in, allowing her to realize that the world is cruel but it can also be giving. She learns that bad decisions don’t make you a bad person, and caring about people does not make you weak.

I fully recommend this book to anyone with a love for fairytale retellings, unexpected slow burns, hopeless romantics, people who always fall for the misunderstood villains, and people who feel like they need some good Death and Fortune in their lives.

Thank you to Henry Holt & Co and Netgalley for the ARC of this book. All opinions are my own.

HOLY WOW. Margaret Owen strikes with a winner! She stole my heart and my time with this one almost as well as the red thief stole jewels. This book is a mastery in the realm of retellings; able to stick with the bones of the story, but still add enough elements that make it your own. I absolutely adored this!

I thought Vanja was such a strong and compelling character. I loved the fact that I got some ace vibes from her as well. This book is filled with (what I'm assuming is) diversity within sexuality and gender. While none is confirmed within the pages, as someone who's bisexual/ace, I often thought that many characters could be apart of the community and I truly enjoyed that. I also loved the pacing, the characterizations and the little details surrounding the entire story. I loved the way Death and Good Fortune played a role in this. I loved the banter, Vanja's wit and how well this whole story unfolded. This was such an entertaining book! I highly recommend giving this a go!

"Once upon a time, there was a girl as cunning as the fox in the winter, as hungry as the wolf at first frost, and cold as the icy wind that kept them at each other's throats. Her name was not Gisele, nor was it Greta, nor even Pfennigeist. My name was-is-Vanja. And this is the story of how I got caught."
If that quote doesn't give you Tangled's Flynn Rider vibes, you're wrong.
Little Thieves takes a German fable of greed and revenge, and flips it on its head to give you something new, unique and gripping. Our main character (who is actually the villain of the original story, interesting right?) has overcome a lot in her life, but that doesn't mean she is a good person. We find Vanja going to extreme lengths for her greed and need to be free from her godmothers, Death and Fortune (which is a whole other story).
Margaret Owen does an amazing job of revealing her plot slowly and deliberately, and creating interaction between the main character and the reader that keeps you engaged. I love a good antihero, and Vanja is one of the 'anti-est'. She will make you love and hate her all at once, hope for a good ending but also realize there is some justice needed. This whole story is so beautifully crafted to make you question moral guidelines and explore this dazzling new world full of curses, heists, antiheroes, royalty, jewels, and powerful women.
Oh, and one of the main characters is literally Milo from Atlantis (okay, I am done with the Disney references now.)
I loved this book from beginning to end. It opens in the middle of an intense scene and leaves you in need of answers right away.
Be prepared to fall in love with this book and unable to put it down till you finish. Not to mention, the author drew art for the book as well, and it is included throughout the story.
Little Thieves was one of the most unique books I have ever read, and I will rave about it for forever, or at least until I have convinced everyone to read it.

A maid, Vanja, takes over the identity of her mistress. The fallout from stealing the identity causes a whole bunch of problems for Vanja. In trying to solve the problems, she ends up finding herself.
Opinion
This book is a must read for any fans of fairy tales, magic, mysteries or even romance. If I only were to read one book this year, this book would be it. I know I skimped on the description but trust me that I would have ended up giving away too much information if I continued. This book is absolutely fabulous!
Many thanks to Net Galley for providing me with an ARC of this book.

I have never read the original “The Goose Girl” fairy tale, but Little Thieves was a really entertaining young adult fantasy novel. It’s my first book by Margaret Owen and I am so impressed by her writing and world building. Not only was there plenty of magic and adventure, but also lots of action, humor, and some romance as well. I was not expecting the story to be quite so emotional, but I definitely teared up a time or two (please check the content warnings below). I really loved that many of the characters were so morally grey. There weren’t always clear heroes and/or villains. The circumstances that compelled so many of our character’s actions blurred the lines of right and wrong. I don’t think anyone facing those situations could fault someone for making decisions of survival. I enjoyed the second half of the book more than the first, since the pacing of the story was initially a little slow as all the players and the world were introduced. I often have this issue when reading fantasy however, so this could definitely be a case of ”it's me, not you.” Without a doubt, my favorite character in the novel was Ragne. She stole the show every time she was on the page. Her loyalty and compassion were unparalleled and she provided such wonderful comic relief. I could honestly read an entire book about her. Little Thieves was a compelling and intriguing novel and I look forward to reading more of Margaret Owen’s books in the future.

CW: child abuse, neglect, physical assault (past) and trauma, fat shaming, murder, death, abusive environments, anxiety, toxic parental relationship

*I voluntarily read an advance review copy of this book*

💬 First Lines can really set the up your reading experience don’t you agree?
Like this one…. ⇣

“Once upon a time, on the coldest night of midwinter, in the darkest heart of the forest, Death and Fortune came to a crossroads.”—Little Thieves

Holly Smokes this was a stellar new take on the age old fabled tale, The Goose Girl!
We follow seventeen year old anti-heroine Vanja Schmidt. Who wears many faces: one of an adopted goddaughter of Fortune and Death, and another as a lowly maid. Along with becoming a princess imposter, and and an excellent jewel thief.

Vanja is the thirteenth child of a thirteen child, when she is just four years old her mother hands her off to two low gods, Death and Fortune. Ahhh but there is a debt to paid for Vanja upbringing… submission and servitude.
Taking things into her own hands, she sets about away that could ultimately change her fate. All with the help of an enchanted string of pearls, she seeks a life of her own.
When a series of events take place, the devious masquerading Vanja finds herself cursed.

Owen’s clever writing stands out when she decided to break the book with little tiny tales. Vanja is an extremely relatable character, her struggles and heartbreak, and complete alienation felt real. Her loneliness is perfectly depicted and as a reader you will endure her turbulent trials right along side her. This bold and feisty protagonist,
is a product of her suppressed damaged life. Outwardly she may comes across as devious, but in reality she is so much more. Wanting nothing more than being in control of her own life and destiny.
The storyline is well paced with reveals that come at just the right time.
Owen’s narration is seamless, and flows effortlessly and smoothly. Making this book a fast read one that I completely inhaled. The German world building, was descriptive and I felt Immersed within the unique fable that author has created. The romance was done with just amount of depth, without overwhelming the plot line.

Margaret Owen is truly a gifted storyteller, and don’t mean that lightly. This was my first time reading her work and I have already bought her other books to read right away.



An incredible thank you to the Author Margaret Owen, @what_eats_owls &
@tbrbeyondtours

I liked the story of Little Thieves and was very curious as to how it was all going to end - especially because I am unfamiliar with the story of "The Goose Girl". I liked the characters, especially when they were all working and plotting together and especially especially when Vanja and Conrad were bantering.
However, I just wasn't a huge fan of the writing. I wish the book had a map (maybe the final version does?) because I had a hard time visualizing the way everything was set up. I also felt like a lot of terms weren't clearly explained and I didn't really understand the big reveal at the end because it was a little convoluted and seem to involve a lot of understanding of the law.

Little Thieves was my most anticipated book of the year. I have absolutely adored everything I have read by Margaret Owen, and Little Thieves somehow went above and beyond my love for her last 2 books! ⁣
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One of my favorite things about Owen’s books is that they are fantasy novels that take place in unique and incredibly well developed worlds, but you barely even notice her crafting these worlds around you. They have depth and originality and are so well built, but somehow you don’t feel like you’re trudging through the world building like some fantasy novels do. She includes important details like gay relationships and consent that slip easily into your understanding of the world without it feeling clumsy or inauthentic. ⁣
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Little Thieves’ main character reminded me a bit of a blend between Fable and Alessandra from Shadows Between Us. She was strong and ambitious, but had interesting and realistic flaws as well. The Small Gods were fascinating and totally terrifying and I wanted to explore every inch of the world just to learn more about them. ⁣
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Finally, I just adored the love interest- it has been forever since I read a book where the love interest it just a genuinely innocent golden retriever and not a morally gray bad boy. It was refreshing and so well done! ⁣
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I’m looking forward to the next one and hope to see more exploration of the romance and MORE female friendship! This book does it so well that I need more!⁣
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Happy to give a big ol’ 5 stars to this magnificent book! Thank you to Henry Holt, NetGalley, Margaret Owen, and TBRBeyond Tours for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for my honest opinion. ⁣
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I would recommend this to fans of Shadows Between Us, Serpent and Dove, and anyone who enjoys Germanic fairytales and fantasy based in those stories.

I found this story to be very enjoyable! I really loved Vanja and the supporting characters in this book. The slow burn enemies to lovers romance and found family tropes were done very well! The last third part of the book seemed a little too long but Vanja’s predicaments and wit were enough to keep me turning pages.

Thank you to TBR & Beyond Tours, the publisher, and Netgalley for providing me with a free e-ARC in exchange for an honest review!

15 Thoughts I Had While Reading Little Thieves

#1. VANJA, NO

I had a lot of thoughts while reading Little Thieves but this is has to be chief among them 😂 Vanja is a lot of things. She’s smart as a whip, tough as nails, and sarcastic to a fault. But Vanja is also the victim of some pretty intense trauma. She has a lot of learning and un-learning to do and, sometimes, she doesn’t make the best choices. Watching her struggle with who she is and what she wants is heartbreaking at times because you, the reader, can see that she is not the complete gremlin that she presents to the world. She has the capacity to do great things, if she would just get out of her own way. I love her for her strengths, but I think I love her even more for her flaws.

#2. VANJA, YES

I promise all these thoughts won’t be about Vanja! But, when she pulls off a plan, she does it with FLAIR! I love her wit, I love her ability to think two steps ahead, and I love that she does it all in a way that makes it look flawless. The fact that we’re dropped right into one of her heist at the beginning of the story let’s you see how her mind works in the best of ways. And I do love when the underdog bites back.

#3. I love Emeric and he will MOST DEFINITELY be a problem.

I loved pretty much all the characters in this book (bar, ya know, the villains though I do appreciate how well-written they are!) but Emeric is definitely in the top two. He’s such a great foil for Vanja! He’s meticulous, kind, and just as cunning as she is. Which, ya know, she “hates”, but it makes for some wonderful tension. And even better jibes.

#4. Speaking of those jibes…

I was expecting a lot from this book. I was expecting the fairytale vibes. I was expecting the vivid setting. I was expecting the heart-pounding action. I was not expecting to laugh out loud quite so much! And the bits that were always guaranteed to have me cackling were whenever Vanja was describing Emeric. Some favorites:

“All in all, he gives the impression of a collection of billiard cues that unionized to solve crimes.”

“All that time I spent stressing over the looming threat of this day-old breadstick with a thirst for justice…”

“That’s a complete lie, but I’ll be a stone-cold corpse before I concede a point to a sentient fireplace poker with an undeservedly high opinion of itself.”

Just… literal gold 😂

#5. Something else I wasn’t expecting? All the tears.

I mentioned that this has representation of how past trauma can affect someone. And, oof, does it pack a punch. I was just calmly reading, having a great time, and suddenly I was sobbing. It’s just so well-written that you feel Vanja’s hurt, you feel her panic, and you just want to make it all better. I tear up at books quite often, but it’s rare when I actually shed a tear. This hit different, though, cause I had to get myself some tissues. It’s beautifully done and something else I hadn’t really been expecting. Not so much the representation, because Margaret Owen does mention it in her author’s note at the beginning. I wasn’t expecting to be touched by it so deeply and I think that’s a testament to the author’s skill with words.

#6. YES, TALKING ANIMALS, VANJA!

I’m, of course, talking about our resident shapeshifter, Ragne. Ragne is incredible and deserves the world! I loved her character and how protective she was of Vanja. I also loved the fact that she was… just so bad at pretending to be human at first. It’s so interesting watching her develop and grow as the story progresses.

#7. No thoughts, only vibes.

I have another quote for you.

“The torchlight is steady, unmoving, like the flame itself has frozen. And if I look carefully, I can see the crumbling ash of my fortune taking a turn for the worse. There’s no sound but my heartbeat rattling in my ears as the coach door slowly, quietly swings open. Nothing is there.”

I want these creepy vibes all the time, please and thank you! The whole book is filled with moments that just steep you in the atmosphere and I love it. It truly feels like reading a fairytale that warns of all the things that go bump in the night. And the wintery vibes are on point, as well! Grab yourself a blanket and a cup of cocoa because you’re gonna feel like you need something warm and snuggly while reading this.

#8. Seven tales are not enough, dangit

I loved the tales that are interspersed throughout this book! They set up the next few chapters in the best way and really dive home that fairytale feel. I know they eventually needed to come to an end, but I just wanted to keep going!

#9. Gods aren’t great at the whole parenting thing

And, yet, I was incredibly intrigued by the characters of Death and Fortune. You could kind of see how they want to help Vanja, but you can also see how much their “help” is hurting her. It’s interesting to see gods trying to figure out a human on that level. They don’t do a great job of it, but I did enjoy them! They were a fascinating addition to the story.

#10. There are SO MANY GODS

Actually, all the Low Gods were pretty fascinating. I loved that they were sprinkled throughout our world and our concepts, like Time and Truth. It was an incredible piece of world-building that drew me into the story even more.

#11. Speaking of world-building… this was A++

Margaret Owen has a way of crafting her worlds where you are pulled in so quickly, you don’t realize how fast you’ve fallen. I was so wrapped up in the world of Little Thieves and that’s 100% due to how well it was crafted. Even though a world with multiple gods could be confusing, it was explained in such an effortless way that I never felt lost. There’s a lot of border conflict and obscure law dropped into this that, even though it was a bit confusing, you were confused right along with the main characters, so it felt natural.

#12. And can we talk about all the descriptions of food???

This book made me miss German food so much 😩 My family and I lived in Germany for about four and a half years when I was younger and one of the major things I remember is the food. After moving back to the States, we never quite found a place that did it right. I’m still on the hunt and this book doesn’t help that longing!

#13. Can we also talk about the romance?

I love me a slow burn and this was perfection. PERFECTION! Especially considering our two lovebirds are both on the ace spectrum. It was… everything. And it also made me tear up a couple times. What? I’m a big softie 😭

#14. *slaps top of book* This baby can hold so much action!

This book drops you into the action and doesn’t let up until you turn the last page. It’s not always in-your-face fight scenes, though those are incredibly well done. At the beginning of the book, it’s just Vanja pulling off a particularly ingenious heist. But all the action, whether it’s intense fights or Vanja doing Vanja things, keeps you on the edge of your seat. You need to know what’s coming and that makes this such a quick read. For a book that’s over 500 pages, I was surprised how quickly it was over! That’s what happens when a book is so immersive, ya know?

#15. That ending…

Again. Perfection *chef’s kiss*

Final thoughts: This book is, to put it simply, incredible. You want expertly done world-building? Check! You want characters that make you laugh and cry, make you love them and want to strangle them? So many checks! You want dark, wintery vibes that make you want to curl up in blanket while you read? Check! This is the whole package all wrapped up in a fast-paced, edge of your seat story that will somehow leave you both satisfied and wanting more. I already knew I was a fan of Margaret Owen’s writing, but this has cemented the fact that I will read literally anything she writes! If you enjoy young adult fantasy that delves into some hard topics and leaves you feeling like you’ve just floated through the most luxurious fairytale, then I think you would love Little Thieves!